Item: Zoon Garden: The Decline of a Nation
Rating: 4.5
Author: Gina

Zoon Garden by Jordan O’Donnell was recently released to coincide with his cross-country bus – book tour. Jordan and his team will be making a circuit of the United States to introduce his book to the public. He says he’s not out to convince you to vote a certain way but to encourage everyone to have meaningful conversations about the direction our country is going. Truth is the key to our continued existence.

Zoon Garden by Jordan O’Donnell | Book Promo & Review

Zoon Garden: The Decline of a Nation Published by Tribe Supply Publishing on May 15, 2020
Genres: Fiction, Humorous
Format: eBook, Hardcover, Paperback
Pages: 166

Jordan O'Donnell strikes the heart of the American public with his salient debut novel. A disturbingly brilliant satire in the vein of Orwell’s Animal Farm, Zoon Garden tells the story of Clarendon Zoo and the dogmatic wolf and sheep tribes that trigger its downfall.

When the mysterious zookeeper of Clarendon Zoo grants his animals the freedom to govern themselves, the creatures create a new land founded upon life, liberty, and happiness for all animals. Though the land seems to function well, each species soon realizes they have differing visions for how the land should be governed. With the help of Eagle and Owl’s propaganda, the traditional wolves and the progressive sheep quickly emerge as leaders. The two species fight to spread their contradictory visions, pitting the animals against one another, and inadvertently throw the zoo into chaos. Fact becomes fiction, fiction becomes fact, the truth becomes impossible to discern. The wolves and sheep slowly destroy the very land they claim to lead…

Timely, convicting, wickedly creative, Zoon Garden is the warning our fiercely divided nation needs to hear. It will leave you asking: What is the truth? Who is to blame? What is the world’s future?

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This book is also available on Barnes & Noble and The Book Depository

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A few quotes from Jordan O’Donnell’s blog and book, Zoon Garden:

“Trust is the center of democracy,” says O’Donnell. “Democracy crumbles without trust and without truth – and that’s the reason it feels like the American democracy is shaking at its foundations. There’s hardly anything left that we agree on as objective truth. Through empathy, we learn to understand one another and learn to fix these problems together.”

“In a world where everyone lies to you, it’s a breath of fresh air to be able to trust somebody,” says O’Donnell. “That’s what I hope we can be this summer. The bus, everyone on it – we want to be a vehicle that is generating empathy and a vehicle that the American public can trust to tell the truth.”

“Truth had become a battleground won by the species that shouted the loudest.”

“This is no joking matter, Owl. It’s hateful verbal abuse. Do you know what follows hatred? Violence, Owl, violence follows hatred.” Tully the sheep

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My thoughts on Zoon Garden by Jordan O’Donnell

This book rivals Animal Farm and Watership Down as an allegory for life and politics. I think it’s going to take me quite a while to process my thoughts on the story.

So much of life today is captured in the pages of this book. Whether it’s the birds that swarm around “tweeting and repeating” words of truth, lies, and everything in between or characters that demand the world conform to their ideals, it’s all in this story for you to interpret as you see fit. How do we tune out the constant badgering and banter to decide what we believe is the truth? What is best for the citizens of Earth, not just for ourselves?

As in real life, it’s difficult to decide exactly who is believable, who has your best interest in their heart, or who is in the right. Most of all, it’s nearly impossible to tell the good guys from the bad.

Zoon Garden has left me with more questions than answers. My sincerest hope is that many people read the book and begin to have meaningful conversations regarding the direction of life on Earth.

I received a review copy of this book from the author. These are my honest, unbiased thoughts.

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About Jordan O’Donnell

Jordan O'Donnell is a former-FBI employee, novelist, businessman, and self-proclaimed wanderer.

After two and half years at the FBI he denied Secret Service, DEA, and FBI agent offers to pursue the writing of his debut novel, Zoon Garden, in hopes of bringing civility and empathy to polarized America.

A Division 1 wrestler for Virginia Tech, where he completed both undergraduate and graduate work, Jordan writes, wrestles, and weight lifts, always searching for the next great adventure to pursue or the next injustice to right.

He enjoys practicing his firearm's instructor skills as well as his carpentry.

He splits his time between a farmhouse on the east coast and a converted school bus traveling the Americas